Shekhinah: A worldwide sensation

2017-08-25 10:04

Vincent Phahlane

share this

Shekhinah Donnell

Sensational singer Shekhinah Donnell goes international with
her new hit-single Let You Know featuring Sketchy Bongo. Shekhinah, who was
booted out of Idols SA in 2012, tells Move!
about the experience, and how she learnt to understand music and the
entertainment industry.

BEING VOTED OUT OF IDOLS

The Durban-born singer is making waves in the international
music scene with the hit-single Let You Know despite being eliminated from
Idols. “I always knew that I wanted to sing since the Spice Girls era. It is
all I wanted to do with my life,” she says. The Back to the Beach hit-maker
tells Move! she was very sad when she got kicked out of Idols. However, it did
not worry her too much. “I wasn’t the best therefore I got out of the
challenge. Being in the game is still wonderful, but I think my fellow
contestants were flourishing in their own rights." Shekhinah tells Move! that
she appreciates the respect and recognition she got from being a contestant on
Idols. The only passion she has ever had in life is to sing so she wasn't going
to give up easily. “After being eliminated from the challenge, my path was
blurry," says Shekhinah. "I continued with my studies and finished
matric. After matric I relocated to Johannesburg and enrolled for a degree in
music.”

HER RELATIONSHIP WITH HER ADOPTIVE FATHER

Shekhinah was abandoned by her biological mother at the
Addington Hospital in KwaZulu-Natal and adopted by Phil Donell as a baby. “I am
grateful to have my dad in my life," she says. "He is the pillar of
my strength and my role model. He supported me in everything I wanted to do,
most of all with the passion I have for music."

HIGHLIGHTS OF HER CAREER

She describes her music as pop combined with RnB. She tells
Move! that the best moment in her career was when she worked with vocalist Kyle
Deutsch on the track Back to the Beach. “I love how things are now; the team
has been absolutely amazing," she adds. "I won’t say fame has changed
me, but my life changed completely." Shekhinah cites the massive
recognition she's getting internationally as another highlight in her career.
She cannot wait for the market to hear more of her sound. When asked what fans
can expect from her in future she tells Move! she won't be releasing an album
any time soon as she will be focusing on her music studies at AFDA. "I
feel like South African female artists are still lacking in the industry, so my
focus now is to get the degree, and afterwards I think I can work on an album.
For now I'll release hit singles,” she laughs.